Ryoma's Challenge
by Demon-Maid-Kenya
Summary: Ryoma finds that Sakuno doesn't have a training partner for next week and gladly signs up. But,he doesn't know that he had gotten himself into a big mess. I will not respond to flamers. Sorry It took so long to update! Here it is!
1. Ryoma's Challenge

I sat on the bench, stretching my arms out

I sat on the bench, stretching my arms out. I had just finished my training and I was tired. I couldn't wait to get back home and go to sleep on my soft bed. I packed up all my stuff and headed to the gate. As I walked toward the gate, I saw Ryuzaki Sakuno, leaning against the cement fence near the gate. I approached her, catiously as to not disturb her. She looked sad, like she would burst into tears at any minute. As I came closer, I placed my hand on her shoulder. Her head snapped around and she looked me in the face.

"Anything wrong, Ryuzaki-san?" I asked, setting down my stuff next to hers.

"Don't worry about me…I'm fine" She replied, looking back at the sunset on the horizon.

"Were you waiting for me?" I asked. I hated making people wait for me. It made me feel like an idiot.

"No…I…uh….am waiting for my grandma to come and pick me up" she replied once more.

"Oh…what did you stay late for, if not for me?" I asked once again.

"My grandma had a meeting to go to right after school and I just got finished practicing with Momo-senpai…" she replied.

I leaned against the fence and closed my eyes, smirking.

"I'll wait with you…" I said, laying back as much as I could.

"Ano….T..Thank you Ryoma-kun…." She stuttered.

There was a moment of silence.

"Um…R..Ryoma-kun?" she broke the silence.

"Yes?" I asked.

"My grandma has another meeting next week at the same time, but Momo-senpai won't be able to help me because he is practicing with Fuji….Would you please help me practice next week?" she explained.

I smirked. It wasn't like I had anything better to do. This school was way boring and I had to get away from the daily routine.

"Sure…I'll take you on!" I replied, grabbing my stuff.

"Ok…Thank you…Ryoma-kun" she thanked me.

I nodded and smirked.

"Ryuzaki-san…your ride is here.." I said, walking off into the distance. I turned around to see her scramble for her stuff and pile it all into her car. I waved goodbye and walked home.

"Whatcha late for?" My dad asked as I walked right into the door.

"It wasn't a date if that is what you were hoping for…" I sassed. My dad was so annoying!

"Dang it!" he replied, stomping out of the room like a little child.

"Grow up dad! Your acting like a little kid right now!" I said, taking my shoes off.

"Keep your mouth shut, brat, and maybe, just maybe, you'll live until tomorrow" he yelled back at me.

"Sure thing dad" I replied, going back up into my room and closing my door. Tomorrow was going to be a tiring day. I needed all the sleep I could get.


	2. A Tiring Day

I awoke with to a startling noise

I awoke with to a startling noise. I bolted up in my bed and looked down. My hand was covered in slobber. The culprit: My sister's dog, Kara. I jumped out of bed and chased the infernal mutt out of my room. I slammed the door and proceeded to go get ready for school. As I stepped out the door I heard my dad call for me again.

"What?" I asked lazily, yawning.

"Do you have anything going on this afternoon?" he asked, peeking his head around the corner.

"Yes…I have to help train Ryuzaki-sensei's granddaughter" I replied, slipping my shoes on and walking out the front door.

"A date?" he asked, walking to the front door.

"No…." I replied, slamming the door in his face.

AT SCHOOL

I sat at the lunch table, lazily nibbling on my cookie. I yawned and went back to nibbling my cookie. It was so boring….This day wasn't going as well as I thought it would. I chewed the last bit of my cookie as Eiji and Oishi sat next to me.

"You look mad…Are you alright, Kiddo?" asked Eiji, sitting right next to me.

"Not mad…bored…" I replied, taking my tray to the trash can and sitting back at the table.

"Yeah…School's pretty boring…." Said Eiji, taking a huge bite out of his cookie.

"Don't say that Eiji! You want to encourage people to be in school!" spoke up Oishi.

"I'm not saying that he should leave, I'm saying that it's just a boring day!" replied Eiji, taking a drink of his chocolate milk.

I stood up, waved goodbye to my senpai's and headed off to the most boring class of the day, English.

AFTER SCHOOL

The bell rang. FINALLY! I walked out the door and headed to the Tennis courts. As I made my way to the courts I met up with Ryuzaki-san.

"You ready? I'm not going to go easy on you!" I replied, suddenly fired up.

"I don't expect you too Ryoma-kun! I will learn a lot more if you don't go easy on me!" she replied, setting her bag down on the bench. We readied ourselves. In moments after the game started, Block D practice courts exploded with the sound of Tennis balls hitting the raquets of the 2 players.

"Like this?" She asked as she hit my serve back with excellent form.

"No…Loosen up a little more, your still a little tense" I replied, hitting the ball back to her. Again she hit it back, this time, flawlessly. I was so amazed at how fast she had learned that she had gotten the ball past me.

"Was that loose enough…Ryoma-kun?" she asked, stretching out her arms.

I walked over to the tennis ball, picked it up and served it. She fumbled for her raquet, but missed the ball.

"Yes…but now your concentration needs to be worked on! You can never lower your guard! No matter what!" I said, taking my stance at the baseline.

"Got it! Ryoma-kun!" she replied, serving the ball to me.

The ball, although a good serve, was extremely high and went over the fence.

"Oops…S..Sorry…R..Ryoma-kun!" she apologized, running out of the field.

I ran after her.

"It's fine..Let's just go look for it so that we can practice" I said, keeping pace with her perfectly. As soon as we reached the bush it landed in, I saw the ball disappear. I dove in the bushes and to my horror found my sister's dog with the ball in its mouth. I clenched my fists.

"GIVE IT BACK YOU MONGREL!" I chased the dog until she lead me to someone's feet. I looked up and saw my sister, looking down at me.

"What are you doing, Ryoma-niichan?" She asked, ruffling my hair.

"Your dog took our only practice tennis ball…" I said, scowling at my sister.

"Don't look at me that way! It wasn't her fault! I was practicing and I lost my ball too so I told Kara to go fetch and so she probably thought that your ball was mine" she explained.

"Yeah, Yeah…Just give me the ball" I demanded.

I served at him, hitting him on the forehead.

"Go, fetch Kara!" she exclaimed. The dog bolted and I chased her down once more. After 10 mins of chasing her, I walked back to where Ryuzaki was to call off the practice only to see the dog, sitting by Ryuzaki-san. She was petting it. This made me furious! But I didn't let it show. I walked coldly up to the dog, grabbed the tennis ball from its mouth and made a shooing jesture. The dog sprinted out of the tennis court and went back to her place. At my sisters feet.

"What's wrong, Ryoma-kun? Who's dog was that?" asked Ryuzaki-san.

"My sisters…" I replied, glaring at my sister.

"Really? You have a sister?" she asked.

I nodded.

"What's wrong? Do you not get along with her?" she asked once more.

I shook my head.

"We get along just fine. It's just her dog I can't stand!" I replied, putting my raquet away and packing the slobbercovered tennis ball into my ball pocket.

"Well, I want to meet her. Do you think it would be ok?" she asked.

I nodded and we made our way over to my sister.

"Hello! My name is…"she began.

"Ryuzaki Sakuno…right?" my sister was still a smart-aleck like always.

Sakuno stood there, stunned.

"Don't look so surprised! Ryoma told me about you! It's nice to finally meet a girl that Ryoma gets along with" she said.

"Ryoma and I are actually good friends!" spoke up Sakuno.

"That's good! I'm glad my little brother has a girlfriend now!" she said, winking at me. I turned around, blushing.

"G..Girlfriend?" asked Sakuno, her face bright red.

"It's nothing..Let's go Ryuzaki-san!" I shouted, walking in the direction of her house.

She ran to my side and waved goodbye to my ever so kind sister.

"What did she m..mean by g…girlfriend?" asked Sakuno.

"I'll tell you later…Quite frankly…I'm too "dog-gone" tired to explain anything right now!" I sighed. Sakuno giggled to herself as we headed off into the horizon, towards her house.


	3. Father and Son Conversation

I sat back down on my bed and casually threw my shoes off. I lazily layed down and looked up to the ceiling. After about 30 seconds of total silence, someone decided to invade my space. That's right, It was my father! UGH! Would he ever stop bothering me? I glared up at him.

"What do you want?!" I asked him, annoyance saturating my voice.

"How was your date?" he retorted, smirking his stupid smirk.

I sat up and he backed off. I turned my head to him, still glaring in his direction.

"It wasn't a date, for the last time! What do you not get about that?" I growled.

"No, I get everything about it, I'm just excited that you have a girlfriend to talk to!" he replied, folding his arms.

"She isn't my girlfriend either. I'm just teaching her to play tennis. Nothing more!" My tone still hadn't changed.

"Sure…I can respect that, but Ryoma, is there something we, as men, can talk about?" he asked, sitting down next to me. I moved over.

"Sure, as long as it isn't perverted" I replied, my glare replaced with a bored look.

"Calm down, for once in my life can't I have a real father talk with you? Anyway, I know you said you are just teaching that girl, but try to hide your feelings about her. She may be just a friend, or she may be more. I don't know and you don't have to tell me, but, son, if you ever like someone, don't think that is wrong, because it's not. It's alright to like someone…" he explained.

I rolled my eyes.

"Dad, Don't start doing that, your scaring me…And you don't have to worry, she's just a friend…I don't want to tell you again dad. I appreciate you telling me though, thanks…" I mumbled.

"Did you just thank me? Did I just hear that from you? Then I must be going insane…My son never says anything like that to me…I thank you son, for letting me know you needed it. I'm only here to help, although it only seems like I tease you, I do it because you're my son…" he explained once more.

I chucked a tennis ball at him.

"Stop it dad, your really starting to scare me now! I get it, alright? Now go read your magazine or whatever you were doing…" I growled, laying back down on my bed.

"Son, it was nice having a fatherly talk with you, it makes me feel….fatherly…" he said, walking out of my room.

"Just don't get used to it!" I yelled back to him.

He was alright, for a father.


	4. Worry

I lazily walked into school, hoping and praying that today would be better than yesterday. Luckily, things went smoothly and I was out of school before I could say Tennis. I made my way to the tennis courts and found Sakuno already practicing on one of the empty courts, or the only empty court I should say. Eiji and Oishi were practicing on one court and the team was practicing on the others. I didn't get it. Why were they practicing? Today wasn't practice. At least not that I knew of. I stormed over to Tezuka to ask him what was going on.

"Tezuka…What is going on? Do we have practice today?" I asked glaring at him.

He shook his head.

"No, it just looks like some of the members wanted to practice extra before the tournament next week" replied the ever calm team captain.

"Oh…Ok. That's what it was. We are still having practice tomorrow, are we not?" I asked.

Tezuka nodded. I nodded and ran off to where Sakuno was practicing her swing.

"You ready?" I asked as I threw a ball to her. She caught it, snapping back to reality.

"Yeah…S..Sure Ryoma-kun…" she replied, hitting the ball to me with a perfect backhand stroke.

We sparred for a few until she really had the hang of her backhand and also her concentration. She really was improving. I was impressed. I drew my hand back for one last stroke. I hit it with the greatest of ease and stopped as she hit it back to me. She made a mad dash for her water bottle and sucked down all the water she could. I walked over to her and put a hand on her shoulder.

"Don't drink so fast. It could give you an upset stomach." I warned, walking over to my water bottle and grabbing a drink as well. She heeded my advice and with a deep breath, set her water bottle down.

"T…Thanks again for helping me Ryoma-kun…" she replied, picking up her stuff and putting it away.

"No problem…" I replied, throwing my stuff in the bag as well.

As we left the school, Sakuno headed in a different direction than I did.

"Are you going to be ok, going by yourself?" I asked. I didn't want her to think I was a total jerk, even though she probably thought I already was.

"Yes…I..I'll be fine Ryoma-kun…Thanks for the offer though…" she replied, heading home.

I waved and headed back home myself. Again, as I expected, my father attacked me with questions.

"No, dad…I wasn't on a date…" I replied as I threw my stuff to the side as I took off my shoes.

"That's not what I was going to ask Ryoma…" came my dad's reply.

I rolled my eyes.

"Then what were you going to say?"

He folded his arms.

"Have you seen your sister? She isn't anywhere to be found…"

I shook my head.

"No dad…I haven't seen Kira anywhere…Last time I saw her It was yesterday and she had her stupid dog with her."

I turned to see his face, his expression that of shock.

"You saw her yesterday? Where?" He asked.

"At the Tennis Courts. I was helping coach ryuzaki's granddaughter and that stupid dog took off with my ball when it went over the fence." I replied.

"Ryoma, this isn't good. What if something happened to her? We have to find her! She could be hurt!" my dad was freaking out again. I sighed.

"Dad, Kira is a big girl. She can look out for herself. She doesn't need you to continue to baby her. Besides, she has Kara. Kara is a smart dog. If she is lost, Kara will help her find her way home…" I explained, trying to calm my father.

"I sure hope your right…" he mumbled.

"I am right…Dad…always!" I growled.

"Well, on the slight chance that you aren't, we are going to go look for her…and we'll enlist the help of your little girlfriend" he said.

I glared at him.

"You leave her out of this!"

"Well, It's too late Ryoma. She was with you and she might even help us find her! She's coming with us whether you want her to or not. So you better hope your sister comes home tonight…" he said, a big smirk on his face.

I couldn't help but feel as if this was a plot to get me and coach's grand-daughter together, but no matter how much that might have been true, my sister was still lost. That fact couldn't be avoided.

I furrowed my brow as I took my equipment up to my room. This was a troubling situation. I sure hoped my sister could be found. I fell onto my bed and fell asleep, worried about my sister. Was she ok? I sure hoped so…


	5. The Search Begins

As I awoke the next morning, there was no dumb dog to wake me. No loud sister to drag me out of bed. This was troubling. Where had she and that infernal mutt gone off to? I lazily dragged myself out of bed, got dressed and proceeded to go downstairs when all of a sudden, I was face to face with my father, who stared me down as if I were prey or something. I glared at him.

"What?" I asked.

He folded his arms.

"Your sister did not come home last night…I hope you are prepared to look for her" he spoke up, pointing out the obvious.

"I'm aware of that father…" I mumbled.

"Oh and I hope you're ready to call that girlfriend of yours too…" he said, again pointing out the obvious.

"I don't need to call her. I'll walk over to her house and get her myself…But I'm not going anywhere until I have something to eat and get dressed" I explained, shoving him out of the way. Man was he a pain!

*AFTER BREAKFAST*

I quickly dressed myself and headed out the door, a tennis ball in hand. This tennis ball was the one that her dog chewed on a while back. I was hoping that if I carried it around, It might help me lure that dog and her owner out. I ran to Sakuno's house and knocked on the door. Coach Ryuzaki showed up, her face full of confusion.

"Hello Ryoma…What's the reason for your visit?" she asked.

"My sister has gone missing and I need Sakuno's help to find her…" I explained simply. She nodded and called up to Sakuno.

"Sakuno, Ryoma is here and he needs your help. Get ready so you can head out with him soon!" yelled the coach up the stairs. I heard a faint reply as she busied herself to get ready.

*ABOUT 10 MINUTES LATER*

Sakuno stumbled out of her house, waving goodbye to her grandmother. She caught up with me who had started walking ahead of her.

"What's going on Ryoma-kun?" she asked.

"My sister is missing and I need your help finding her and her stupid dog…" I grumbled.

She giggled.

"You really don't like that dog do you? Oh and your sister, I thought you didn't get along well with her…"

"It's not that, it's just that she is very important to me and my father. That dog she has is important as well, all though I hate to admit it…It's just natural for family to worry about family I guess…" I explained.

She giggled once more. I glared at her.

"What's so funny?" I asked.

"It's just funny to see Ryoma-kun this worried about someone…Usually you would never worry and just put it off…I guess it's just funny seeing you acting…well…not like you" she replied.

"Your right…this isn't like me…never was…but family is family and she must be found immediately" I spoke up.

She smiled, I turned away, hiding my face that adorned new shades of red.

"Ok then! Let's start looking!"


	6. Day One: Momo and Fuji Join the Search!

*DAY ONE*

First we decided to look all around town. That was no good. We then decided to check all the parks as well. Nothing. After that, all the entertainment places we could. Still nothing. Where was she? This was really starting to piss me off! As we headed to our next search destination, the public tennis courts, we bumped into Fuji Syusuke. He was part of the Seigaku Tennis team and one of the best players, although I hated to admit it.

"What's going on?" he asked.

"I'm looking for my sister. She has black hair like me, she's taller than me and has a dog with her…have you seen her around?" I asked.

He shook his head.

"Sorry, but no…I haven't…I can help you look though if you need help"

"Thanks but no thanks…we don't need.."

"That would be great Fuji-kun!" came Sakuno's enthusiastic reply, completely ignoring me in the process.

"Ok, great! Where do you want me to look?" he asked.

"Anywhere you can! Call Ryoma's phone if you find her, alright?" she replied.

He nodded.

"Is that ok with you Ryoma-kun?" she asked. I sighed. I guess it would be better if we had more people searching. I agreed and off went Fuji to look for her.

"Next time Sakuno-san…please let me handle this…" I spoke up.

She nodded and we began our search again, but as we did so, we ran into another member of the Seigaku Tennis team, Momo-senpai. As usual he had just walked out of a burger shop and looked to be on his way home.

"Hey Ryoma! What's up man? Didn't think I'd see you here! What's going on? You on a date?" he asked, elbowing me slyly. I hit him upside the head.

"No you idiot! We are looking for my sister. She is tall with black hair and a dog…have you seen her?" I asked.

He shook his head too.

"No…Dude…sorry! Want me to help find her?" he asked. Before Sakuno could reply, I sighed.

"Sure…If you want to…Call me if you see or find her, alright?"

"Alright! Will do man! See ya!" he ran off in the opposite direction.

Soon there was a call on my cell. I looked at the caller id. It was Fuji. I answered.

"What is it?"

"You forgot to tell me the name of your sister…" he spoke up.

"Her name is Kira…" I replied, "Anything else?"

"No…thanks!" he spoke again and hung up. Momo did the same. Why did these guys want to help? It's not like she was their sister. I shrugged. Oh well, I guess it couldn't be helped. 2 helpers were better than none.

We continued to search until nightfall. Nothing. I was increasingly starting to worry even more now. Was she alright? Did she have a warm place to sleep? Did she have plenty to eat? Why was I even worrying about her? I knew she wouldn't be so dumb as to try living on the streets or something like that on her own. No way. My sister was way too smart for that. I figured that we should continue the search in the morning and see if anything turned up. I called Fuji and Momo and told them that if they wanted to help me continue searching that I was going to do so in the morning. They explained that they were going to continue helping and that they would see me in the morning. I also took the liberty to walk Sakuno home.

"Thanks for helping me search today." I replied. It was so hard for me to say Thank you since I wasn't normally the type to do so.  
"No problem Ryoma-kun…can I help you search tomorrow?" she asked. At that moment was when our hands were intertwined. I quickly removed my hand.

"Yeah…if you want…I'll pick you up again around the same time" I replied, moving my hat to cover my eyes and walking away.

As I came home, I could tell that my father was even more anxious than I was about her.

"Did you find her?" he asked, rushing to my side. I shook my head.

"No dad…I even had Momo-senpai and Fuji-senpai helping me find her…we didn't see a thing"

His head sunk and he sulked back to his chair. I headed up stairs and collapsed on my bed, still thinking about my sister and if she was alright or not. And as much as I hated that dog, I was now hoping and praying that that dog would do her duty to her master and keep her safe, warm and happy. I knew I could count on that dog to help her through hard times. She did after all get her after her first breakup to help her deal with the stress. I couldn't help but smile though as I began to fall asleep. I guess it was because I knew my sister would be alright.


	7. Day Two: A Lead, Finally!

*DAY TWO*

I woke to the sun shining directly in my face. I turned to look at the clock. OH CRAP! I was going to be late! I scrambled out of bed, got ready, and ran out the door. As I arrived at Sakuno's, there were Fuji-senpai and Momo. I didn't even have to call them…Great! I wasn't in the mood to anyway…A few minutes later Sakuno stepped out and then we started our search again.

Again we searched all over town. We asked anyone we could possibly find. Nothing. She wasn't that hard to spot, was she? I then remembered the tennis ball I had brought along with me. Maybe if I set it where I last saw the dog with it, then maybe she would come back for it.

"Guys…We're going to the school grounds…I want to try something" I spoke up.

"Sure, but what is it you want to try?" asked Momo as we headed to the school grounds.

"My sister's dog likes this ball. If I set it back where the dog is used to seeing it, the dog will come back for it…I know she will…" I replied.

"Go for it dude…If you think that will work…just don't be too disappointed if it backfires on you…" retorted Momo. I glared at him.

As we arrived on the school grounds, I found the spot in the bushes where Kana liked to hang out. I set the ball in that spot.

"She likes to hang out in the bushes?" asked Fuji.

"It's a dog Fuji…She likes to hang out anywhere where there are tennis balls or food…Ok…Let's go back into town and start searching again…We'll all meet back here when we are done searching for the day…alright?"

"Fine by me!" came Momo's reply as he ran off towards town.

"I'll call if I find her…" spoke up Fuji.

I nodded and he ran off in the opposite direction as Momo.

Sakuno grabbed my hand and we headed straight. When we hit town, we began our tedious search.

"How do you know so much about her dog?" asked Sakuno out of the blue. I looked at her.

"That dog has been with her for a couple years and I've gotten to know that dog's quirks quite well…" I replied.

"Really? Do you think that dog will come and get the ball?" asked Sakuno again. I looked away.

"I really don't know…I'm kinda hoping it does…because…That dog is the only one who can lead us to her…" Sakuno grabbed my hand. I looked at her again, my face adorning bright shades of red now.

"You really care about your sister…don't you?"

I looked down at the concrete.

"I guess you could say that…Plus my old man is worried about her too…"

I could hear her laugh. I didn't dare look up fearing the shade of red my face was now. What was it about her that made my face go an embarrassing shade of red?

"Are you ok, Ryoma-kun?" she asked. In confusion I looked up into her face.

"Yeah…I'm fine…" I replied. She looked into my face.

"You look hot…Ryoma-kun…maybe we should go sit down in the shade somewhere for a bit…"

Now that you mention it…It did seem a bit hot. So we searched for shade and found a nearby bench that sat underneath a big tree. As we sat down, I noticed that I had just thrown on my jacket this morning in a flurry. That is why I was so hot. That is why my face was red and I was sweating beads. I stripped off my jacket until I was only in shorts and a t-shirt. I could feel the cool breeze of the day begin to relieve my hot skin. I looked over at Sakuno…Of course she had to be the smart one and wear something not so hot. Why was I so stupid as to throw on a jacket? I knew what the weather would be like, but why? Was it because of me losing my sister that I had finally lost my cool as well? That was just great! Now I was going to be the laughing stock of the whole school.

"So you finally noticed that you had brought your jacket?" asked Sakuno. What? She had known this since before we left? Why did she not tell me sooner?

"Finally? You knew I had it on and didn't tell me?" I asked.

"Well, I figured that you would eventually figure out that you had it on…I just didn't know how long it would take you to realize it…" she giggled.

Ok…now I was pissed! Was the reason why she didn't tell me because she liked to see me suffer? Was she a masochist or something? I sighed. I had no time to worry about that. I got up and began my search again, Sakuno following closely behind.

"Don't be mad Ryoma-kun…I didn't say anything because I knew if I did it would have killed your pride…" she spoke up again. I turned around sharply. She stopped suddenly.

"My pride is already dead thanks to my stupid big sister! You didn't do anything to it…It is my own fault I don't have it anymore…But enough about that, let's go find my sister…" I replied.

We searched until sunset and went back to the school to see if the ball had been taken. Nope. It still stood in the spot I had set it that morning.

"What now Echizen?" asked Momo.

"Let's keep the ball here for now…If not today there is always tomorrow…Thanks anyway guys…" I turned, grabbing Sakuno's wrist and beginning to walk her home. She pulled her wrist away.

"What's wrong?" I asked, looking back.

"Ryoma…Look!" she said, pointing ahead of me. Sure enough there was Oishi, running up to me.

"Hey, Echizen! I heard that you lost your sister am I right?"

I nodded.

"But who did you hear that from?"

"From Fuji…He called me today and asked if I could help…Luckily for you, I know where she is!" He explained.

My eyes went wide. He knew where she was? This was great!

"Really? Can you take me there?" I asked.

He smiled.

"Sure…Follow me!" he replied, leading me to where I would finally find my sister. Once I would see her, she was going to get a tongue thrashing like she has never seen in her entire life.


	8. Don't Assume Things!

As we came up on a quaint house, I began to really wonder if Oishi had taken us to the right place. I spoke up.

"Are you sure this is the right place?"

As I looked up at him, he turned his head and nodded, a smile on his face.

"Sure is. You might be surprised though as to who's house she's been in…"

"Wait a minute! She's been HERE all this time? If you knew, why didn't you tell me sooner?"

Oishi shrugged.

"Fuji didn't call until last night asking if I knew where she was, so I didn't even bother. I thought you guys knew where she was already…"

I sighed, keeping my exasperation to myself.

"Just show me where she is…"

Oishi pointed into the quaint house. The window open, I peeked in. My eyes widened and my anger flared up. Why was she here? Why did she go here and didn't tell us? What was she doing with Eiji-sempai in the first place? I walked to the door and slammed my fist on it, loudly and continuously until someone answered it.

"Oh hello Chibi! How are ya?" he asked non-chalantly. I looked up at him, a glare in my eyes. If looks could kill, he would definitely be dead by now.

"What's wrong Chibi?" he asked again, this time holding up his hands in his defense.

"I need to speak with my sister! NOW!" I roared. He quickly ran up his stairs and went to fetch her. Sakuno came up behind me and put a hand on my tense shoulder.

"Ryoma-kun…She's your sister…try not to be angry with her. Try to talk to her calmly…Things will never get solved if you start yelling at her. Can you?" she turned me and we looked into eachother's eyes. I took a deep breath and sighed.  
"I…I'll try…" I managed to get out before my face turned red and I had to turn out of embarrassment.

Then came down my sister, dressed in blue jeans and a t-shirt with slippers on her feet.

"What is it Shorty?" she asked as she leaned up against the door frame. I looked up at her, my face showing worry. She smiled gently.

"Where have you been, you lunatic? I've been searching days for you! Me and Father have been worried sick about you! Why didn't you call us to tell us that you were going off to Eiji-sempai's house?" I asked as calmly as possible.

"Look Shorty, I was here because Kikumaru needed help with his homework and wanted to play some tennis on the side. I assumed that you guys would know where I went." She explained, folding her arms and closing her eyes, a smile still on her face.

"WELL DON'T ASSUME THINGS! ALRIGHT? We were worried sick about you…We were wondering when you would call and say that you were ok…that you were over here and that we didn't need to worry…" I trailed off as I looked down. Trembling with anger was all I could do at the moment. I mean…How could she just assume this stuff? She was dumber than I had originally thought…I then felt a hand on my shoulder. I looked up and I saw Kira standing over me, smiling.

"I appreciate that you guys were worried about me and that was just plain stupid of me to not call and tell you where I was…Next time I go out I will call and tell you guys where I am going…I'm sorry…I'm sorry…" She embraced me for a moment and then pulled away.

"Look Shorty, go on home and I'll be home tomorrow…alright? I think it's about time you escort your friends home" she said.

I nodded and turned toward home, waving goodbye to her, knowing she was alright and that I would see her tomorrow.

* * *

_**Sorry I haven't updated in a while. Been busy looking for work... -gags in corner- Stupid sucky economy! Anyway, hope you enjoy! ^_^**_


	9. Alone Time

As I headed home, Fuji spoke up.

"Hey Echizen…This is where I leave you…My house is just over that way…We'll see ya!" He turned the corner and was out of sight. We continued to walk until Momo left us too. That just left me and Sakuno and we lived kinda close by. I sighed and blushed a bright red at the thought of us being alone. I was even more startled when she interlaced our fingers together. Man, this was awkward…

"Ryoma-kun…I'm so glad you found your sister. I'm glad she is ok" came her soft voice. I looked up at her and nodded.

"Me too…Umm…Uh…T..Thank you for helping me find her…Your help was much appreciated…" I looked down, our fingers were still interlaced. It felt so weird for us to be holding hands…I was only a kid after all…Well…That's what my father and sister always called me anyway. Well, It was weird because it was my first time.

"Ryoma-kun, I didn't see your sister's dog with her, is she always with her usually?" she spoke up. I cleared my throat trying my best to act like my normal self.

"Yeah…That dog is hyper, but she is also mellow when she wants to be. She was probably laying up in the room with her. That dog would stick with my owner till her dying breath. She is such a loyal dog…" I trailed off and then caught myself. Oh crap! I didn't want to sound too emotional about this. That definitely wasn't like me at all!

"You really care about your sister and her dog…You are such a good brother…" she said.

I looked up.

"Yeah…Although sometimes my sister doesn't deserve it. She does the dumbest things and expects us to have sympathy for her. Sometimes it is hard to show that sympathy. I usually think about how dumb that was and how she could have been smarter in the situation, but unfortunately…not everyone has common sense…" I explained, looking back down again.

"Yes, but the fact that you worry about her even when she doesn't deserve it shows you are a good brother…dare I say a doting brother…" she replied. My face grew red again. Good thing I was looking down. It was getting harder and harder to be with Sakuno. Her wisdom and knowledge, dare I say, out-matched my own and that in itself was what made her…appealing. Wait what am I saying? Ignore that stupid Echizen! Get it out of your head! I shook my head, trying to calm my reeling mind. Luckily we came up on her house and she had to leave me.

"This is where I leave you. Thanks for letting me help Ryoma-kun…It was fun and I'm glad your sister was found ok." I looked up and nodded. Just as she was to turn around and go inside, I grabbed her wrist and pulled her into an embrace. As we stood there for a few moments, I decided to reveal everything or spill my guts so to speak.

"Sakuno, I thank you from the bottom of my heart for helping me find her. If it weren't for you, I probably would have gone crazy trying to look for her and then when I did, I probably would have blown up in front of her. Thanks for that. I don't know why, but when you give me advice, It always works. That is why I really like you Sakuno…" I explained, my face turning red. This time I didn't turn away. I had to face her like a man! This was so not like me, but I had to tell her the truth. Leaving someone out in the dark is cold even for me.

"Thank you Ryoma-kun…I…really like you too. Thank you for inviting me to tag along and your welcome for all the advice. I didn't know it affected you so much…" she replied. I quickly, without even thinking which was so unlike me, placed a gentle kiss on her lips. With that I waved goodbye and took off towards home. Man was I going to hear it from dad when I got home.


End file.
